German experts say floods more common as climate change worsens
German experts are urging a reassessment of flood protection strategies as the situation in parts of the country remained critical on Wednesday.
"In the course of climate change, where flood processes will change, we will certainly see other types of floods in future," said Ralf Merz, hydrologist at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research in Halle.He made his comments on Deutschlandfunk radio on Wednesday morning.
"Such long flood events will certainly occur more often," he said.
Thousands of volunteers have been working across Germany for days. The states of Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia are particularly affected.
The German Weather Service (DWD) predicted heavy rainfall in Lower Saxony until Thursday and in Thuringia until Friday.
After a night of heavy rain and strong winds, the flood situation in parts of Lower Saxony and Bremen is critical on Wednesday.
Many rivers are still reporting level 3, which means that there is a risk of major flooding, an overview by the Lower Saxony State Office for Water Management, Coastal Defence and Nature Conservation showed.
Much of the damage could have been avoided, said Merz, the hydrologist. Consideration should be given to whether the current flood defences still work, he said.
"Maybe what we have learnt from the past is not always a good measure for the future."
He pointed out, for example, that there are now far fewer natural floodplains. Merz acknowledged that "we will never have 100% flood protection. It is not financially or technically feasible and the landscape cannot be retrofitted."
